SANTA ANA — A 43-year-old Santa Ana man was indicted Wednesday on federal charges of possessing four machine guns and hundreds of child pornography images.
Arthit Tanjapatkul was charged with one count of possessing machine guns and three counts of possessing child pornography, according to prosecutors.
The defendant, who was arrested Oct. 9, was scheduled to be arraigned Nov. 18. He is free on $250,000 bond.
Investigators began probing Tanjapatkul in March of last year when he sold a regulated military-grade laser that was stolen by a military officer convicted in federal court in North Carolina, prosecutors said.Investigators began probing Tanjapatkul in March of last year when he sold a regulated military-grade laser that was stolen by a military officer convicted in federal court in North Carolina
Investigators seized dozens of guns, including the four machine guns, in October of last year. They also found a hard drive that contained the illicit child images, prosecutors said.
When investigators searched a storage unit he rented in Santa Ana in July, agents recovered a hard drive containing 10 discs of child pornography that included about 79 videos and at least 831 images of child pornography, prosecutors alleged.
